How long can friendship last?

Friendship between women can be a complex thing, with break-ups, make-ups and heartache to rival that of any romantic union. Ann Packer's Songs Without Words her follow-up to the best-selling The Dive From Clausen's Pier, expertly captures the intricacies of this relationship, along with the complications of marriage and the despair that often accompanies adolescence. Songs Without...

Stories that convey authentic emotions

In her previous best-selling novels, The Dive from Clausen’s Pier and Songs Without Words, Ann Packer proved her agility at inhabiting people who live through unspeakable events: What happens when a restless young woman’s fiancé becomes a quadriplegic on a fun day at the lake? What happens when a model mom’s kids are her life, and then her daughter attempts suicide? These are...

Accident is catalyst for illumination

Carrie Bell, like many 23-year-olds just out of college, is searching -- searching for true love, searching for a true vocation, waiting for life to begin. Trouble is, everyone thinks she has found her life. Engaged to her high school sweetheart, Carrie is thoroughly ensconced in Madison, Wisconsin -- the town where she grew up, went to high school and college and now works in a job that only...